Blogging the democratic revolution
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. –Benjamin Franklin High-level talks have resumed between the two Koreas under the old “sunshine” policy, which can only mean that what has happened before in the past is bound to repeat itself very soon. North Korea’s supposedly impending nuclear disarmament is going to bring about all of the usual fringe benefits of duping the West through blackmail and coercion. The United States, for one, has trashed its previously assertive position with the north and is now considering early provision of fuel aid. The south,…
No, its not pornography or terrorist websites. It’s Publius! Check out this new website, GreatFireWallOfChina.org, and type in any website to see if it’s blocked in China. What can I say? It’s an honor that the Chinese government thinks we’re influential enough that we deserve to be blocked. Cheers!
Richard Fernandez at the Belmont Club posts about a subject close to home — about a document called the Melo Report released yesterday in the Philippines. It’s the result of a fact-finding investigation conducted by former Supreme Court Justice Jose Melo into extrajudicial killings committed by both the military and communist rebels. The result is interesting, but my historical standards, not too surprising. By and large, the communists have killed far more people than their right-wing adversaries. There is evidence that the military “allowed, tolerated and even encouraged” political assassinations, and that retired Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan was among those…
Australian patriot babes celebrate National Day on Friday Source: Tim Blair Hat tip: Instapundit More Aussie freedom babes Source: The Daily Telegraph of Australia Australians were told by their nanny-state minders that their beautiful blue Australian flag was nothing more than nasty gang colors and something to be put out of sight, for fear of offending precious Islamofascists and tribal rights special interest groups. Tim Blair in Sydney has one account of this leftwing lunacy right here. More Australian patriot babes celebrate Source: News.com.au Aussie patriots by the dozen Source: The Telegraph Little did they realize, it was AUSTRALIANS they…
Charles at Little Green Footballs has happened upon the latest in sexy Saudi swimwear, with the New Zealand-designed ‘burkini’ – something which could keep a whale afloat. Which is just the thing. Islamofascist women are getting fat under all those bedsheets and Islamofascists want them to get swimming to slim down. Which is kind of strange, given the premise of the veil. I thought the purpose of the veil was for women to ‘cover their hair’ because the sight of hair was just too stimulating for Islamofascist men to restrain themselves. To them, women are these potential tramps and temptresses…
It was a weekend of a lot of explosions. Outside of the bomb attack at the Madrid airport, nine blasts went off across Bangkok, killing and injuring dozens of people. It is another question of why and who, as essentially both the former government as well as the opposition is out of power following a military coup in September. It could be either, and while the former opposition to ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was known to commit such acts, the military is blaming it on Thaksin supports. In this case, either makes sense, and such an attack by Islamists from…
Peter Mork at Economics with a Face has some intelligent observations about ongoing efforts in certain European cities to eliminate all – repeat ALL – traffic rules in the name of fewer traffic accidents, an idea that scares the heck out anyone who first hears about it. But it turns out, it’s not that crazy an idea at all. Rule-free traffic, seen in some third-world cities, where no one thought to set any rules, turns out to work very nicely. Now Europe’s working on it the concept. Someone apparently went and looked at how well things worked on this matter…
OK, it was a ratbag of a bill. It lumped in everything that possibly could be lumped in, good with bad. Excellent, friendly deserving nations, like Vietnam, Colombia and Peru, (in short, our equals), got much of what they needed. Nations ruled by disgusting, undeserving, ungrateful governments, like Ecuador and Bolivia got plenty too. Messes like Haiti got the golden goose handed to them. Offshore drilling passed. Everyone got something, in what was kind of the last congressional pinata before the Roundheads (Democrats) take over. But boy it was sloppy. All told, I am happier with things this way than…
Congress has just wrapped up a huge free trade package! They actually are allowing it to go to the floor for a vote around 4 p.m. Eastern! They darn well better pass it! Not only will Peru, Colombia and Vietnam get some kind of trade relief for the next year (it’s temporary for the first two, but this is better than nothing), pretty much everyone else who wants free trade – The Caribbean, the African states, Ecuador & Bolivia, and Haiti – will get it too! This is fine! Better everyone in than nobody in. If that is what it…
Patriotic Australians, perhaps like this recent Miss Universe, will march for democracy in their bikinis Saturday to demonstrate their opposition to Sexy Saudi Swimwear Source: PubTV Enraged at the local mullahs’ medieval declaration that unveiled women are ‘uncovered meat,’ thousands of angry Australians will march on their mullah mosque Saturday to protest that declaration … in their bikinis. Somehow, you can’t get more Australian than that. They’re patriots. Aussies live for the beach, party like sailors, and some of them probably don’t ever wear anything else except bikinis. Mullahs, of course, are not pleased, so they’re coupling up with their…
Vietnamese wave as the motorcade of U.S. President George W. Bush makes its way through the streets of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Monday, Nov. 20, 2006. (AP Photo/Nghat Le) Vietnamese onlookers react to the arrival of U.S. President George W. Bush at Ho Chi Minh Museum in Ho Chi Monh City, Vietnam, Monday, Nov. 20, 2006. (AP Photo/David Longstreath) Vietnamese cheer U.S. President George W. Bush as he arrives the Ho Chi Minh City stock exchange Monday, Nov. 20, 2006, in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. (AP Photo/David Longstreath) A volunteer waits to get a glimpse from leaders dressed…
Monday the trade Neanderthals in Congress rejected endorsement of Vietnam’s entry into the World Trade Organization. It was slopped through a lame-duck committee and Congressional Republicans and Democrats voted against bringing Vietnam into the world trading system. They wanted to shut Vietnam out. And keep all the trade to themselves. Problem is, it takes two to trade, so we all are dimished by keeping a good trading partner out. Vietnam went from zero trade ten years ago to our 16th largest trading partner. What a lousy way to treat a country we’ve made money off of and they’ve done the…
You are a very poor farmer in Sichuan and out in the countryside live far away from everything else, schools, medical care, government, roads, running water, everything. You are only poor because the communist government has taken away everything in the name of “the people.” Your two-year-old toddler swallows farm chemicals and is sickened. With everything you’ve got, you get into the rickety jalopy and drive as hard and fast as you can to make the long trek to the hospital to get the child to treatment. Your child is unconscious and struggling to breathe and the Chinese hospital, true…
Red Chinese national ballet performance in Guangxi, Nov. 9 Source: AP, via Yahoo! News Here’s a stunning development: Activists in China are starting to say out loud what the government is trying to muffle over without discussion: Communism is the problem in China. What is communism even doing in China in this modern age amid the glittering success of capitalism? What is it DOING here? And they are standing up to say it, taking to the streets, handing out leaflets, exercising their God-given human right to free speech, and property rights, and risking major consequences from the regime: Like this:…
Thandar Shwe marries Zaw Phyo Win in “Myanmar” Source: Reuters, via Yahoo! News Now here’s a story that was given the proper treatment by Reuters! Burmese tinpot general and military junta leader Than Shwe put on a big lavish wedding for his daughter Thandar Shwe, with tiaras of diamonds, cascades of champagne, and a five-tier wedding cake. A video of it accidentally got out and it was more money on parade than anyone had seen in a long time in Burma. Classy Burmese, however impoverished, noted to Reuters that it was pretty darn vulgar, what with the yellow diamonds and…
Following a disputed but highly publicized report that North Korea apologized to a Chinese envoy for its nuclear test, the hermit kingdom has decided to rejoin 6-way talks regarding its nuclear program. China, the United States and North Korea agreed in talks Tuesday to resume the six-party talks on North Korea’s nuclear programs “at a convenient time in the near future” after a break of almost a year, a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said. Christopher Hill, U.S. head delegate to the six-party talks, told reporters after meeting with his Chinese and North Korean counterparts that while the precise date needs…
Not long ago, I worked with a group fighting for East Timor’s independence. It was a rare time I actually had something to do with the political process instead of just watched. I organized demonstrations and painted signs and argued in meetings with UN officials. I fervently wanted East Timor’s independence from Indonesia. It was in 1998 and 1999. Once upon a time, East Timor was part of a global Marxist National Liberation Movement that threatened to communize third-world countries into hammer-and-sickle republics based on an outdated German philosophy that failed every time it was ever tried. The real game…
Apparently, an anarchic landmass with a nuclear weapon. I feel like this post should have been written back in 2002 when it was revealed that North Korea was working on a nuclear weapons system. The end result seemed inevitable even then. With thousands of pounds of artillery armed just miles from Seoul and the prospect of mushroom-cloud catastrophe just about anywhere, Kim Jong-Il had everyone blackmailed. He was going to get what he wanted no matter what and nobody had the balls to stop him. But really, there is only so much the United States can do short of invasion…
It is traditional thought to immediately consider a military coup bad because they usually are. Take the many horrors of Africa and Latin America, for example. There have certainly been ambiguous exceptions, such as Pinochet’s coup in Chile which still inspires much debate. But nowadays things are a bit different. Military coups are occurring for the explicit purpose of creating national harmony and moving forward with democracy. Look at Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania, where coups have led directly to increases in civil and political liberties with a progression toward elections. The most recent coup that inspired international condemnation was in Thailand,…
Cripes, what’s got into these guys? I used to live in Singapore and I used to write for the Far Eastern Economic Review, mostly slapping around China’s oppression in those palmy expat days. Today, the once-ominiscent FEER, now a news-turned-essay magazine, and down on its heels due to the Internet and global forces, is nevertheless back on the Singapore sheet list. In fact, this time the Singaporean government has downright banned it. And for SUCH a Singapore reason! They said the FEER failed to provide the name of someone they could serve papers to, in the (inevitable) event they sued…
Below this is an email from a cousin of mine and his friend who is currently studying and working with an NGO in Thailand. He leans to the left, as you may notice, but provides a great description of what it’s like on the ground level after the military coup. Plus, he knows his stuff. Take a look. ***** by David Ferris & Terri Bennett For those of you who don’t know, I found out last at 11PM that there was a military coup here yesterday. The military’s top general (Songthii) lead tanks into Bangkok, declared a coup, and took…
I don’t think many people will be scratching their heads about the coup in Thailand, at least if the entire ordeal is about what we think it is. The events leading up to this make it clear. The impasse of Thai politics in which Prime Minister Shinawatra is accused of corruption yet hugely wins polls anyway, leading to mass protests, has caused one election already to be ruled invalid. Since then not much has happened, but it has created a certain political vacuum in which case both sides are preparing for a repeat of 1992. Perhaps the army really is…
Thai military tanks surrounded the presidential house as Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra made a speech at the United Nations in New York. Source: Reuters, via News.com.au Goodbye, democracy. Thailand’s military has launched a coup to overthrow the government. All the good English language Thai Web sites, like The Bangkok Post and The Nation are down, probably from huge traffic. The U.S. stock market, fearful of what events in Thailand can do to world markets, is falling over this. A well-placed correspondent in Bangkok right now e-mails to me: It’s the army commander, overthrowing Thaksin. Nothing to do with Islamofascists or…
Miss Indonesia Universe, crowned Aug. 25, 2006 Source: Reuters, via Yahoo! News! Miss Kazakhstan World 2005, Miss Kazakhstan Universe 2006 Source: Missosology Miss England World 2005 Source: Yahoo!, via My Pet Jawa Miss Afghanistan Earth 2003 Source: Wikipedia What do these girls have in common? They’re all Muslim beauty queens, showing off their hair, faces, arms, legs, and much more. Nothing remarkable about that in modern society – everyone’s got to wear a bathing suit sometimes, and no, I don’t mean this – but for perverse, repressed, bitter, dirty-minded Islamofascists, it’s something that’s utterly forbidden. The Age of Democratic Revolution…
Just over three years ago, the United States and Chile signed a free trade agreement, opening up markets and allowing for greater prosperity in both countries. Now, Chile has signed a free trade agreement with China, the first between the Asian giant and a Latin American country, bilaterally opening up markets on both sides. It will lead, just as it has in the past, to greater prosperity for both. China and Chile have signed a free-trade agreement, Beijing’s first in South America. The deal will give China better access to Chile’s extensive natural resources, such as copper, while Chile will…